Page 59 of Crush (Deadly Hearts 1)

ChapterThirty-One

Ruby

Asoft grunt wakes me from a dead sleep. I crack an eye open to see that the day is growing dark. That means I’ve been asleep for about three hours or so. My tongue is glued to the roof of my mouth and my eyelids feel like lead, but I sit up, on alert at the noise.

“Get back in bed,” I chide Ramsey, who I have caught sneaking out.

He chuckles. “You coming on to me?”

“Don’t think you’re up for a round of hide the sausage,” I snort. I love this about him. I can be light and free with him and it’s…easy.

He lets out a loud laugh and shakes his head. “You’d be right. But I need to get going. Work.”

I frown. “What?” I snap. “You can’t go to work.”

“Look, Ruby. I know you have this thing with relationships with employees, but it’s tough shit. I’m not quitting. I need to know that you’re safe and if working on the door at Widows is the only way to do that, then that’s what I’m going to do, and you will have to accept it.”

“Oh, I don’t expect you to quit. The whole working for me ship has sailed and is halfway to New York by now. But…” I reach over the nightstand and pick up my phone. I chuck it at him. He extends his arm to catch it and then grunts clutching at his side. “…see where I’m coming from?”

He throws my phone on the bed with a scowl. “I’m working and that’s final.”

“As your boss, I’m telling you no.”

“As your boyfriend, I’m telling you, you don’t get a say,” he retorts.

And this is why I never wanted to mix business with pleasure. I sigh and fold. I hate that I have to fold. I hate folding. I’m not a fucking folder and yet here I am folding like a tent with no poles. “Fine,” I mutter. “But if shit kicks off and you can’t do your job, I will fire your ass so fast, you won’t know what hit you.”

“Got it, Boss,” he says with a soft smirk. He approaches me and tilts my chin up with his good hand. “Kiss me,” he demands.

I part my lips in preparation. He presses his to mine and sweeps his tongue against mine. He is such a good kisser, it makes me want to drag him back into bed and ride him until the cows come home, but that would require his active participation and I really don’t think he is up for it. It’s disappointing, but I eventually let him go before my arousal shoots off the chart from this one sensual kiss and I abandoned common sense.

“Go,” I rasp. “I will see you there in a bit.”

He pulls back. “You’re coming in?”

“Have to. Haven’t been in the casino for a couple of nights. People will notice. I also have to drop in at the other two at some point tonight.”

“Get Declan to drive you, yeah?”

“If I must,” I say, a bit miffed still about him and dad and their little buddy system. At least Declan had my back about Jake. But then, it is the least he can do after his deviousness.

“See you soon,” Ramsey says and ambles off.

I inhale deeply and flop back to the bed, for a moment, wanting to go back to sleep, but I need to get up and do what I said.

I drag my stiff body out of bed and stretch. I shove my phone into the pocket of my sweats that I didn’t even bother changing out of when I crawled into bed. I hobble for a few steps, feeling the pain in my leg subside the further I walk.

“Shake it off, Rubes,” I mutter to myself.

Walking through the sitting room, I find it empty and head into the kitchen under no assumptions that my dad or Declan have left.

I’m correct. They are both in the kitchen, on opposite sides, my dad hunched in a chair at the small round table in the corner, bruised knuckles on show and Declan is leaning against the counter near the fridge/freezer, a bag of frozen mixed veg held up to his face.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake!” I snap at them. “What is this about?”

“Nuthin’” Dad mutters.

“Yeah, right,” I growl and turn to Declan, expecting him to answer.

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